SIMMONS: There is no making sense of goaltender interference in the NHL

Zach Hyman of the Toronto Maple Leafs slides after attempting a shot against Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins during the second period of Game Five of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on April 19, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts.Maddie Meyer / Getty Images

I don’t know what goaltender interference is anymore in the National Hockey League.

I wish I did. I wish it was that clear.

I try to know – I try to understand the rules – but I can’t make sense of what I see night after night throughout the season and most recently in Stanley Cup playoff games.

I thought it was reasonably clear that Zach Hyman interfered with Tuukka Rask on a goal eventually credited to Auston Matthews Friday night. Hyman was doing what he does best, get in the way and creating some havoc. But as he did that, he prevented Rask from moving to his left. Odds are, Rask would not have stopped the puck either way. But that’s not the point, really. The point is, there was interference and the league didn’t acknowledge that with its call.

Later Friday night in Calgary, it looked as though Johnny Gaudreau had scored one of those sneaky skilled wrap-around goals that he is certainly capable of doing. But the goal was waved off and coach Bill Peters rightly challenged that there wasn’t goalie interference.

In the play, Sam Bennett was pushing and shoving with Colorado defenceman Erik Johnson in the goal crease. They contacted goalie Philipp Grubauer, who was sent in one direction, then dove in the other. While diving away from where Gaudreau did his wrap around, this looked rather elementary. Grubauer flopped and Gaudreau scored.

The NHL ruled, no goal. What I seem to see, what you see, what they see, doesn’t appear to be the same thing.

Something needs to be fixed here. Again. And fast.

THIS AND THAT

Being a successful team is all about trust and belief. You have to trust the guy sitting beside you on the bench or in the dressing room. You have to believe in him. So the question is: How do Maple Leafs trust or believe in Nazem Kadri again after selfish suspensions in two straight playoff seasons? They like him. He’s very likable. They may even believe in him. But can they trust him to do the right thing? … A year ago, after five playoff games, David Pastrnak had four goals and seven assists against the Leafs. This year, after five games, Pastrnak has two goals, two assists. A year ago heading into Game 6, the Patrice Bergeron line with Pastrnak and Brad Marchand had 23 points. This year, 13 points … A prominent scout on Nikita Zaitsev, who has had a reasonably good series for the Leafs: “I don’t know what he is. I like players who define themselves. Is he a shut-down defenceman? No. Is he a first-pass defenceman? No. Is he an offensive defenceman? No. If I was calling my boss on him, I wouldn’t know what I’d say.” … Nathan MacKinnon is not the best player in the NHL, just the most explosive in the playoffs. Just the most exciting to watch in the post-season. He’s why people want to see Connor McDavid and Patrick Kane and Sasha Barkov in the playoffs. You want to see those who lift you from your seat. MacKinnon has 24 points in 18 career playoff games over six seasons. This will be his first time going to the second round with the Colorado Avalanche … The Carolina Hurricanes should put one name on the back of every jersey and it would be appropriate: Brind’Amour. The whole team plays the way their coach played … One good night of penalty killing in Boston jumped the Leafs from 54.5% against the Bruins to 64.3%. The numbers remain terrible. Close to or better than 80% is the goal for most teams … The biggest difference between the Leafs and Bruins one year later: Jake Muzzin. The Leafs No. 1 defence pairing of Morgan Rielly and Ron Hainsey were taken apart by Boston last year. This year, they haven’t faced the Bruins big line nearly as much as a year ago. The Muzzin-Zaitsev pairing has had just one rough game in five.

HEAR AND THERE

How long before the stories start about the Los Angeles Lakers having interest in Masai Ujiri? And why wouldn’t they? Shouldn’t every team in the NBA have interest in Ujiri considering his record? And once the Ujiri rumours begin, unless he puts an end to them, won’t they be tied somehow to Kawhi Leonard and his immediate future. The NBA is nothing if not a land of stories and rumours and a lot of them happen to come true … What Marc Gasol has done for the Raptors, rather understated, in a relatively short time, is been nothing short of remarkable. His work in the playoffs against all-star Nikola Vucevic, has been game-changing. Vucevic is down from almost 21 points a game in the season to 13 against the Raptors, from shooting 52% on the season to 38% in the playoffs, from 12 rebounds a game to 9.3 against Toronto … Kyle Lowry has now passed DeMar DeRozan for most playoff games played by a Raptor … What in hell has happened to the Boston Red Sox? Heading into Saturday night, they were a game and a half behind the Blue Jays. And they’re behind Baltimore. Good thing the Celtics and Bruins are still playing .

SCENE AND HEARD

Old story on Steve Yzerman worth repeating. The Red Wings had the fourth pick in the 1983 NHL Draft. They desperately wanted local kid Pat Lafontaine, who went one pick ahead of them to the Islanders. They had no real interest in Yzerman, but settled for him at No. 4. All he’s gone on to become the face of the modern Red Wings, now the general manager. First pick in that draft, Brian Lawton, can be found these days on the NHL Network … It’s almost May and the Edmonton Oilers still don’t have a general manager, after firing Peter Chiarelli in January. That tells me they know who they’re hiring. They just can’t get him yet. My bet – Vegas assistant Kelly McCrimmon ends up running the Oilers and that would be a great hire for president Bob Nicholson … Keith Gretzky was running the draft for the Bruins when Boston picked Jake DeBrusk. To date, Gretzky missed on the other two first-round selections he had, passing on Matthew Barzal, Kyle Connor and Thomas Chabot, who were selected immediately after the Bruins three consecutive picks. That was the draft Connor McDavid went to Edmonton first and Mitch Marner went fourth to the Leafs …The longer you’re around Bruce Cassidy the more you’re impressed with the Bruins coach … Saw this while looking up something else: Did you remember that Felix Potvin and Andrew Raycroft were the Bruins goalies in 2003-04? I didn’t remember Potvin as a Bruin at all. Also on that team, a rookie named Patrice Bergeron and seven-year-old William’s dad, Michael Nylander.

AND ANOTHER THING

The first seeds in the NBA playoffs will easily move to the second round of the playoffs. The first seeds in the NHL have already been eliminated. So what do we like better? The best teams winning early and advancing? Or the best teams getting upset early on? I’ll take the first round of the NHL playoffs over the NBA playoffs every year but the championship of the NBA often trumps the Stanley Cup Finals … It’s easy to look back and say this but I believe if Victor Hedman had been healthy for the two games he played or the two he didn’t dress the Tampa Bay Lightning might still be alive in the playoffs. That’s how valuable a 30-minute defenceman like him can be in the playoffs … A cliché I’ve never understood: The fourth game is the toughest to win. Can anyone explain why? … People talking about the Drake Curse and I’m thinking what curse did Dallas Drake ever bring to anyone? … Every time there is a closeup on the bench, I think what’s Will Farrell doing coaching the Colorado Avalanche? … Francisco Lindor is on his way back to the Cleveland Indians, which is one more reason to watch baseball … Marcus Stroman has given up just six earned runs in five starts for the Blue Jays. If he keeps this up for another month or so, he should deliver a fine package in return for him being dealt elsewhere … This confuses me. The Blue Jays sent Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to the minors to learn to play defence. Then they had him in the lineup at DH in Buffalo …. Not a great start for Josh Donaldson, hitting .239 with just two home runs and three RBI for the Atlanta Braves. His replacement, though, Brandon Drury is hitting just .181 for the Blue Jays … I don’t understand this CFL off-season in so many ways, least of all the labour difficulties with the players … Happy birthday to Ed Belfour (54), Nick Beverley (72), Michel Goulet (59), Don Mattingly (58), Tony Romo (39), Jamie Sale (42), Vinny Lecavalier (39), Alex Baumann (55) and Brutus (The Barber) Beefcake (62) … And hey, whatever became of Hal Gill?

I understand, although disagree, with the Jays playing the business game with Guerrero, protecting themselves long-term with the young slugger. But now, the deadline date has passed and Guerrero remains in Buffalo with the AAA Bisons. All he’s done in AAA is hit .412 with an on-base percentage of .500 and an OPS of 1.3.

He is hitting over .400 after hitting a powerful .402 at AA New Hampshire last summer.

Guerrero’s comparables, if he has any, are doing quite well as young players in the big leagues. Fernando Tatis Jr., also son of a former major leaguer, and one month older than Vladdy, has hit six home runs in part of his first month with the San Diego Padres. Ronald Acuna Jr., basically 15 months older than Guerrero, was rookie of the year in the National League with Atlanta and has a tidy OPS of 1.092 in his sophomore season with the Braves.

So what’s the delay on Guerrero Jr.? The Blue Jays hem and haw whenever asked about his eventual call-up. There was a report he would play his first game at home on Tuesday against San Francisco, then a report contradicting that report. For their part, the Jays aren’t saying. The wait, in truth, has been long enough. The time to bring Guerrero up was yesterday or the day before that one.

*****

Steve Yzerman’s return to the Detroit Red Wings was really no surprise. It seemed like only a matter of time before Yzerman would end up back with the Red Wings after stepping out of the general manager’s job with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

But now the hard part begins. In Tampa Bay, Yzerman built the most explosive, probably deepest roster of on and off-ice talent in the NHL. Now, in Detroit, home for him really, he has a rather thin roster, a team to rebuild and he’s stepping into a new position in a ramped up Eastern Conference.

In recent weeks, the Florida Panthers, with a stronger team than Detroit, hired Joel Quenneville to coach. The Philadelphia Flyers, with more talent than the Wings, hired Alain Vigneault to coach. The Buffalo Sabres, with young stars like Jack Eichel and Rasmus Dahlin, haven’t yet hired a coach but the assumption is the Sabres, Flyers and Panthers will all be better next year than they are right now.

All you have to do is reference what Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have brought to the New York Islanders in a single season of work to realize how quickly change can come.

It’s possible that Yzerman will add associate Pat Verbeek or longtime scout Al Murray to his front office in Detroit, which would strengthen the group around him. But the East, suddenly, has challenges and depth it hasn’t had before and that’s without factoring what Jack Hughes will do in New Jersey.

*****

The road to the Stanley Cup has never been so wide open.

Tampa Bay, the best NHL team in years, is out. Calgary, the best in the West, is out. The Lightning led the NHL with +103 in-goal differential this season. Well behind them were the Flames at +62. The third-place team in that much-discussed area are the Boston Bruins, +44 on the season and they can be eliminated by early Sunday evening.

Which means what for the remaining teams in the Stanley Cup playoffs? It means the road to the Cup has never been so available. The Maple Leafs have not been near a Cup in 52 years. St. Louis and Winnipeg, whoever survives, have never won the Cup. Columbus, before last week, had never won a playoff round. The Islanders were a dynasty almost 40 years ago. Nashville has been to the Cup Final once but didn’t win it.

Only the Washington Capitals, struggling as they struggled a year ago in Round 1, have won the Cup as recently as last year. They played Vegas, who is in contention once again in its second season.

Chicago and Los Angeles didn’t make the playoffs after winning five Stanley Cups combined. Pittsburgh went out first round after winning two Cups the past three years. The excitement in cities that never been close to the Cup has to be more intense than ever before. This is either great for hockey or terrible for hockey. You decide which side you’re on.

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